One Big Happy Weasley Family Are you kidding me?
by obliviated fan
Summary: Several years after the Last Battle, tragedy strikes. Interview with Hermione.
**One Big Happy Weasley Family? Are You Kidding Me?**

 _Disclaimer: JK Rowling owns the collected Harry Potter canon. I own nothing, not even the clothes on my back._

Oh, hello, please do come in.

Here, please sit. Would you like some refreshments?

No? Well, if you're sure. Let's get down to business, then.

My thoughts on the Harry Potter business? Ooh, that's a loaded question. Ahem. It's a tragic business, all around, no question.

Do I know what happened? Of course I do. I was on the investigating team from St. Mungo's, after all.

Oh, no, I'm on detached duty from the Ministry. Can't say more, I'm sure you understand.

Oh, that. Well, I suppose I can, it was supposed to be announced soon anyway. Potion withdrawal. Nasty that. Very painful, obviously. Poor H- poor Harry.

Love potions. He was potioned near-constantly since S- Sixth Year, if not bef- before. *pauses* Several years later it became a fatal dose, staved off only as long as it continued to be applied. If he'd known, and gotten to St. Mungo's in time, I believe something could have been done, but he didn't know. And it's all my fault.

Oh, I knew. Not right away, but after we took our NEWTs, I knew. SHE *snarls* Sorry about that. She was potioning him constantly; the only break was during our Seventh Year, obviously. But I thought he knew at the time. My oh-so-loving husband had told me he'd been potioning me through the NEWTs and marriage, soon after, but had stopped after that. And by then it was too late for me.

Oh, isn't that law common knowledge in the Wizarding World?

Oh, you're a muggleborn too? I'm sorry. Anyway, the law I'm speaking of doesn't allow the wife to divorce the husband. For any reason whatsoever. Except if the wife is from a magical family and the husband's a muggleborn, of no name or standing in the Wizarding World.

Yes, yes it is unfair. It's hardly the first law in the Wizarding World to be biased against muggleborns, or half-bloods for that matter, against women, or both. I joined the Ministry to try to fight things like that from the inside, but progress has been slow at best, possibly nonexistent, depending on how you look at it.

Anyway. Back to Harry. I'm sure you've heard about the news recently, with him divorcing HER? I mean Ginny? What was hushed up at the time was that he had caught her in his bed, with another man. *pauses* Again. He'd told me earlier that it had happened at least a dozen times that he was aware of, and he had suspected there were many more that he hadn't caught. So anyway, he'd finally had enough, and divorced her. He was in the process of cutting her out of his finances, best as the investigators could tell, when it happened. Without her keeping up the potion, the leftovers in his system kicked in and he went into toxic withdrawal. Near-instantly fatal.

Oh, I doubt anything's going to come of it for HER. He didn't have time to finish cutting her out, so she inherits everything. And since she's from an old pureblood family, everything was hushed up.

What did I mean about it being my fault? I should have told him back when I found out. Back when it was still safe for him. Or even later, if I'd told him, at least he could have been prepared, and gone straight to St. Mungo's to get flushed. I believe I mentioned that already. *sighs* Some friend I turned out to be. But no, I had to do what was easy, and assume that SHE had stopped after the wedding, that SHE had told him.

What am I going to do now? I don't know. I certainly don't have anything to live for anymore, other than my job. My husband doesn't see me as a woman anymore, not that I'm sure he ever did, I have no children, and I wouldn't give them to him if he wanted anyway. Perhaps… Yes, that is an idea. I recall that I had an offer to join another team in my department, and they were investigating something particularly interesting. It's potentially very dangerous, but it could change the whole world, much less the Wizarding World, and as I just said, I have no reason to stay safe anymore. Well, thank you for listening, and I hope that this interview worked for you. I'm afraid I have things I need to do now, so if you would please?

-OBHWF-AYKM- -OBHWF-AYKM- -OBHWF-AYKM-

Harry looked on in interest as his new friend was talking about his pet rat and the spell his older brothers had given him to turn it yellow. As he raised his worn-looking wand to try the spell, the compartment door opened again, revealing the plump boy who had looked in recently and a girl with bushy brown hair and big front teeth, already dressed in her Hogwarts robes.

"Has anyone seen a toad? Neville's lost one," she said bossily.

"We've already told him we haven't seen it," replied the redheaded boy.

"Oh, are you doing magic? Let's see it, then," the girl asked with interest. She then looked at Harry again, and gasped softly. "Wait, do I know you? You seem familiar… Like I knew you, like we were friends a long time ago. It feels weird," she blurted out.

Harry looked at her more closely. "That's funny, I feel the same way. Maybe it's a sign that we can be friends if we try? I think I'd like that," he muttered shyly.

"I think I'd like that too," she beamed brilliantly, sitting down next to Harry and pulling the other boy, Neville, to sit next to Ron. "My name's Hermione Granger, what's yours?"

"Harry Potter." He smiled back.

 _A/N I wrote this late at night, in between deep-cleaning the house, while suffering from high fever for the third day in a row. I was not in a good headspace, and it probably shows._

 _This is my first story in the HP universe that is actually finished and ready to post. I've written a snippet in another universe, in a different location, that may or may not be continued, and I've got several other stories in the works, both fanfiction and original, but this is the first one here._

 _A/N 2: This story is complete. Sorry to disappoint._


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